ABSTRACT As recent debates about climate change indicate, public policy-making is often criticised as being predominantly reactive, with politicians responding in piece-meal fashion to current problems. How well legislatures can predict the future or prepare for it is thus a question really worth asking. Focusing on the Finnish Eduskunta, this paper critically examines the role of the Committee for the Future, a unique parliamentary institution that was established in 1993 ‘to generate dialogue with the government on major future problems and opportunities’. Drawing on parliamentary documents and elite interviews, the paper explores the Committee’s role through its unique tasks and working practices, and assesses whether its position has institutionalised within the Eduskunta and Finnish state administration more generally. The paper also evaluates the Committee’s impact on Finnish long-term politics, identifies its strengths and weaknesses, and puts forward practical recommendations for turning legislatures into more forward-thinking institutions.

中文翻译：

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鼓励更长的时间范围：芬兰教育未来委员会

摘要 正如最近关于气候变化的辩论所表明的那样，公共政策制定经常被批评为主要是被动的，政客们对当前的问题以零碎的方式做出反应。因此，立法机构能多好地预测未来或为未来做好准备是一个真正值得提出的问题。本文以芬兰教育局为重点，批判性地考察了未来委员会的作用，这是一个独特的议会机构，成立于 1993 年，“旨在就未来的重大问题和机遇与政府进行对话”。该论文借鉴了议会文件和精英访谈，通过其独特的任务和工作实践探讨了委员会的作用，并更广泛地评估其地位是否已在 Eduskunta 和芬兰国家行政机构内制度化。